Who is The Palladian Traveler?

BENVENUTI!Welcome to the blogging lair of Tom Weber, aka The Palladian Traveler.

This is an eclectic site devoted to the pursuit of happiness — actually la dolce vita (the sweet life) — from within the borders of Italy and, occasionally, beyond.

Grilled veggies at Torre Santa Sabina, Puglia, Italy

Grilled mussels at Grotta Marinara, Gallipoli, Italy

Tom traded his hometown St. Louis Cardinals’ baseball cap in the United States for a Borsalino and he now hangs his capello in the Puglia region of southeastern Italy, where the Adriatic and Ionian Seas embrace, centuries-old olive trees thrive and the quintessential Mediterranean diet contents.

A veteran print and broadcast journalist, with well-worn passports that have taken him to 49 countries and counting, Tom fell in love with the Bel Paese years ago. As he notes, “I’m inspired by the beauty I find in all things that are very, very old, and reliving history, or at least meandering along cobblestone and travertine streets that were laid down ages ago and just looking up and marveling at what occupies the space still today, really gets my ‘Vespa‘ running.”

Tom has a good eye behind the lens and is a graphic storyteller, but he’ll let you decide as he keeps his camera batteries fully charged and the dispatches flowing from his creative hideaway up in the hills just outside Ostuni — la Città Bianca (the White City).

Hi Tom,
I’m an Austin, TX architect and writer looking to visit additional Palladian villas in September and am looking for a reasonably priced guide to provide access to villas I’ve not yet visited. I’d like to do a quick tour of several. I normally rent a car on my own, but I’m thinking for some of the more obscure villas that a guide might be more efficient. I also am looking for an inspiring, but reasonably priced, place to rent for about a week in and/or around Vicenza, a place where writing about villas would be facilitated! I had hoped to stay at Villa Ghislanzoni, but they don’t have my available dates. I follow and love your blog very much and hope that you don’t mind me contacting you—in case you have a suggestion or two? Grazie mille!

Darlene — I would suggest you contact the Ville Venete Network, an association under the government agency Regione del Veneto (Veneto Region). Here’s the website: http://www.villevenete.net/portalVV/faces/public/viven/. Select “en” in the upper righthand corner for English, then go to the Personalized Offer page from the homepage and fill out a request form indicating what you’d like to see and do. They’ll reply with a proposal. Let me know how it turns out.

What a wonderful discovery this site is! We just returned from two weeks discovering Italy between Venice and Trieste as well as north into the SudTirol and Val di Non at apple-harvest time. What a trip! I’m sorry we didn’t have your wonderful commentary before we left. I’m enjoying it now – and it’s bringing back the not-yet-jelled memories of our trip. AND making me think about next time… Thanks so much for sharing. Carol E.

Hi John — There’s a lot to see and do around Spilimbergo, one of 20 “Jewels of Italy.” Here’s a great tourist site on your nonno’s hometown and places near your roots in the Friuli Venezia Giulia: http://www.turismofvg.it/Locality/Spilimbergo. You’ll be close to Gorizia (the Nice of the Adriatic), Trieste, Belluno, the Dolomites, and great wines from the Colli. The list is endless. Sorry, Treviso’s a bit of a hike down into the Veneto. Mandi!

Tom, I spent some time at the website you recommended for Spilimbergo. Thank you. I also discovered 26 people living there with my maternal grandfather’s surname. Things could get very interesting! I enjoy your blogs and photos and wish you continued joy along the cobbles.
John

Hello. My name is Dante Liberatore. My brothers & I own Liberatore’s Ristorante & Catering in Maryland. Every three years I invite guets to join me to a tour of Italy…It’s a great adventure for all of us. Could I email you to get a few do not miss restaurants & hidden jewels from you??
Our trip is in Mid-August for 13 days. Rome-Lucca-Firenze-Abruzzo( where my mom & dad were born & raised)-Amalfi Coast & back to Rome

My name is Nadine, and I work for InterNations.org, maybe you have already heard of us? If not, with over 1.4 Million members, InterNations is the no.1 worldwide community for expats and global minds, offering its members the opportunity to network, socialize and find expat-relevant information online and offline.

The reason I am contacting you is that your blog about living in Italy as an expat through your unique international point of view would fit just wonderfully in our Recommended Expat Blogs Italy Section! I really like your blog and I am sure that our members would love having access to it.

If you are interested in having your blog featured on our website (InterNations.org) or have any other questions please let me know!
I hope to hear from you soon and have a great day!
Best regards,

Greetings from Columbia, Missouri. I just recently stumbled upon your site and want to tell you how much I enjoy it—photos and writing. Lucky and courageous you that you and your wife have built a house in Italy! Living there always has been my dream, as well; however, at this point I think I’ll have to settle for trips to and fro for the rest of my life. I’ve spent time in all of Italy’s regions, including Sardinia and Sicily, but have traveled through Puglia only to get to Greece. I hope to visit there on my next trip; I’ve always intended to explore that area; It sounds wonderful— and I know the food is. Your photos and stories give me more incentive.

We have lots in common. I was born in St. Louis, grew up 60 miles west of there and graduated from the journalism school at UMC in ’74. You aren’t Tom Gianella, by any chance, are you? He was a fellow classmate and photographer. I’ve been in love with Italy since 1970, when I first studied Italian at the university with a prof from Sicily. My first trip was in 1972 and I’ve been back nine times since. I studied cooking with Marcella Hazan in 1980 in Bologna and have spent a life in cooking and chasing good food around the world. Lived in Portland, Oregon twice, but ended up back in Missouri. Worked in publications all my life—writing, editing, photographing and designing for books and magazines. Also cooked Italian food in Portland at a fresh-pasta shop. Wrote a cookbook in 2011. Started and led the Slow Food chapter here for 13 years. Loved every minute of that, and went to the international Slow Food meeting, Terra Madre, in Torino in 2010. Now I’m retired and spend time cooking, gardening, traveling—and lately— writing and calling lots of legislators! Took a “History of the Mafia” course last year at the university. Taught by a historian/friend who lived in Sicily and did her doctoral work there. It was fascinating.

Anyway, just wanted to give you a shout, and say thanks for documenting life in Puglia. Perhaps our paths will cross some day, the next time John and I are in Italy!